Theodore Roosevelt was a visionary and a great leader. Roosevelt had strong convictions that he applied to his leadership of this nation, and held all of our nation’s values in high esteem. Among many of Theodore’s pursuits, he was an avid conservationist. He wanted to ensure that the beauty and resources of the United States remained intact for every generation to walk on its soil. Many of the national parks we enjoy and the reserves our wildlife inhabit are all products of Roosevelt’s efforts. From a young age, Theodore loved studying and being with wildlife and nature. He was taught how to camp, hunt, clean and butcher game, and live off the land. This was truly an unexpected passion of the Roosevelt family considering their social status. …show more content…
When the economy is doing well, people generally tend to be destructive, frivolous, and sometimes wasteful. Fashion started to be critical to women in the United States. Women’s hats were very popular, and very expensive. Hats were decorated with feathers from exotic birds. Birds were killed by the thousands for only one or two valuable tailfeathers. In 1903 Pelican Island, Florida, was declared a Federal Bird Refuge. This three acre island was the first wildlife refuge in the United States, and was created to protect birds, primarily egrets, from plume hunting. Theodore was critical in the development of this reserve, and its creation marked the beginning of a new mentality concerning wildlife in …show more content…
His friend, Gifford Pinchot, studied forestry in Nancy, France. Theodore had been acquainted with Pinchot prior to his presidency, and appointed Pinchot Chief of the U.S. Forest Service. The partnership made a formidable combination. The national forests covered 56 million acres at the U.S. Forest Service’s conception in 1905 and 172 million acres only 5 years later. Not only did the two men increase the area of national forests, but also set precedents for responsible management of forested areas. Pinchot campaigned under “for the long run”, a quote that emphasized his ideals on long term decisions “Gifford Pinchot”. His beliefs were accepted by the public, and despised by logging companies. But successfully, Roosevelt and Pinchot mandated laws regarding replacing trees that are harvested for
After Theodore’s grandparents death he went on to be a cowboy for a few years. Theodore also was in the Navy before he was president. With Theodore's family being rich it gives him an advantage for becoming president because you need a lot of money to be president. Theodore Roosevelt was Vice President before he became president. Theodore was a hunter and he liked it because he was smiling over a dead bear.
Shortly after, he was flying through public service positions. Some including; captain of the National Guard and minority leader of the New York Assembly. Years after his mother and wife’s deaths he resumed his political track, first as a civil service commissioner, then as a New York City police commissioner and Assistant U.S. Navy Secretary while President William McKinley was in office. Having interest in the Spanish-American War, Teddy left the government and established a group of volunteered men, known as the Rough Riders. Teddy Roosevelt was known as the first environmentalist president by signing ,in 1906, the National Monuments Act, thus protecting sites at the Grand Canyon and creating what we know as the National Parks of America.
(HISTORY, “President Mckinley is shot”)Now looking back on it president Mckinley was a mediocre leader and in his place America received arguably one of its best leaders to this day, President Theodore Roosevelt. One of his many accomplishments regarded him and conservation. Roosevelt was even known as the “conservationist president” He used his authority to protect American wildlife and focused largely on that unlike previous or even future leaders. During his presidential reign he preserved 230 million acres of land, “established 150 national forests, 51 federal bird reserves, 4 national game preserves, 5 national parks, and 18 national monuments by enabling the 1906 American Antiquities Act.” (NPS, “Theodore roosevelt and Conservation”)
Throughout his life, President Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) was a zealous conversationalist. Even before his presidency, Theodore was actively involved in influencing national conservation policy and public opinion on the issue. Theodore Roosevelt implemented a myriad of public relations strategies to advance his environmental cause and raise public opinion of the movement. This paper will analyze Theodore's passion for conservation, which was exemplified by his intimate relationship and advocacy for Yellowstone National Park, and the techniques used to gain popular support for his environmental policies during his administration, which was highlighted by his 1908 speech at the Governors Conference on Conservation. The work will include a brief introduction to the conservation movement, and some of the major policies enacted during his time as president.
Publishing articles in the Century, popular support for Muir developed from the public. With the help of Underwood Johnson (publisher of the Century), Muir helped introduce a bill to Congress that would establish Yosemite National Park. Sheep ranching and lumbering were to be outlawed in 1500 square miles of Sierra forest when the bill passed on October 1st (Muir Book, 30-31). This was a key contribution for John Muir, it truly established his leadership position in the conservation movement. Nonetheless, Muir moved on modestly with his effort.
Roosevelt was the first president to create national bird reserves. He created 51 national bird reserves, 18 national monuments, and 150 national parks. For example, Roosevelt established the Grand Canyon in 1908 which is in Arizona. Also, some of the national parks that Roosevelt created are Carter Lake, Wind Cave, and Sully’s Hills. Roosevelt created the United States Forest Service because he wanted to protect lands and protect wildlife.
Between these two powerful men was President Roosevelt, who from an emotional point of view agreed with Muir that the wildness of nature was a wonder to humans and must in part be preserved, but realistically he aligned with Pinchot because humans themselves live in nature and must subsequently use natural resources. These two viewpoints came into conflict when the Hetch Hetchy project was proposed to create a water supply above San Francisco. Ultimately, Muir lost in his long battle to protect Hetch Hetchy, but what was established was that to infringe upon the resources of the national parks was simply not worth the money and time because of the long legal battle that would occur. Pinchot’s legacy was the creation of managed wilderness lands that could be used by humans in their survival. Ultimately, the difference between preservation and conservation was highlight by the
Pringle isn’t exactly a fan of Roosevelt throughout the book has a tone of skeptical and critical. Other authors talk about how great Roosevelt is, but Pringle decided to do the opposite and talk mostly about his weaknesses. Pringle never bought into the popularity of Theodore Roosevelt’s greatness, but his disapproval becomes less strict as the book goes on, and just become though-provoking. There is very little talk about Theodore’s family, and he very briefly talks about his life in the Dakotas, his early career in Washington and New York, his “Rough Rider” campaign, or his travels through Africa and South America. The book’s main focus is about Roosevelt’s political career rather than the adventures and fun things Roosevelt did.
Theodore Roosevelt is one of the American presidents who are remembered for the changes that they brought or made in this nation. He was the 26th president of the United States and he is remembered for his transformations and important quotes which are useful today. Theodore Roosevelt was the most youthful president in the historical background of America amid that opportunity to be in office. He had not yet turned forty three years, the required age, when he got to be a president. He played a major role in transforming the federal government and the transformations made are still in effect today (viewpoint article; Beale).
We must see that each is given a square deal, because he is entitled to no more and should receive no less". It is no surprise that after the term ended, he was reelected again in 1904 winning both the popular and electoral vote. Roosevelt was also a naturalist, and had a lifelong love for the outdoors. He began regulating logging and mining of natural resources. Under his order, 200 million acres of land were put under government protection.
He founded these programs because he had great pride in the environment and felt that it should be protected. During his presidency, he preserved over 230 million acres for the public to use recreationally. He was able to do this when he signed the Antiquities Act. This act stated that archaeological sites should be protected and preserved for the future. Some of the land that he preserved is being used for national parks such as Yosemite National Park in California.
In the book “TAKING SIDES” historians Ted Steinberg, and T.H. Watkins talk about this important issue in American history and what became of it. When Theodore Roosevelt was elected to the Presidency of The United States 1901 He ran as a Conservative progressive. One of the things that Roosevelt was adamant about was the outdoors. Roosevelt was a
As the country faced turmoil with the first world war, the opponent's argument grew stronger and more than a third of the reserved land was returned to the public. Immediately they got to work lumbering the land, greatly reducing the size of the forest. Luckily as Roosevelt came into power, he restored most of the land that was previously in the reserve, with the support from Gifford Pinchot. Along with preserving the forest, the rapidly decreasing Elk population was another push for national park status. Due to unregulated hunting in the area and the loss of habitat from lumbering, the Elk population had gone from an “estimated 25,000 to 40,000 animals in the 1850s to 2,000 or fewer in 1905” (Setzer).
He developed his love for the wilderness early on, on adventures with his friends and walks with his grandfather who encouraged his curiosity. In his early schooling, Muir continued to be taken with nature and he became almost obsessed with the lessons on natural history and the literature that involved animals at school. When he heard his family was moving to America in 1849, when he was only 11, John Muir was filled with joy (John Muir: A Brief Biography). He had heard of the vast wilderness in the New World all throughout his schooling and the idea of being able to experience it all firsthand made the long journey to America full of excitement. In his biography, The Story of My Boyhood and Youth, he described a conversation he had with his grandfather right before he left for the New World about all the birds, gold, sugar, and other wonders he would encounter in his new home (Muir
Nation parks today are seen as very amazing places where people go to view the wildlife and landscapes, but it wasn’t always like that. Back in the days around Roosevelt 's term in office national parks were used to fuel mass production of wooden products until Roosevelt started to conserve them. Theodore Roosevelt, often called "the conservation president," impacted the National Park System well beyond his term in office. He doubled the number of sites within the National Park system. As President from 1901 to 1909, he signed legislation establishing five new national parks: Crater Lake, Oregon; Wind Cave, South Dakota; Sully 's Hill, North Dakota (later re-designated a game preserve); Mesa Verde, Colorado; and Platte, Oklahoma (now part of Chickasaw National Recreation Area).